Keeping High-Risk Mothers Connected to Care
By Office of the President | Jun 2, 2026
Maternal health disparities remain a significant public health challenge, particularly
in Central Brooklyn, where many high-risk mothers face barriers to accessing care
after childbirth.
Led by Aimee Afable, Ph.D., MPH, Associate Dean for Community Engagement and Associate Professor of Community Health Sciences in the School of Public Health, Downstate’s We Care About Brooklyn (WeCAB) initiative addresses that challenge, and the NIH-funded project builds on years of community-based research and partnerships throughout Central Brooklyn.
The initiative uses a remote support platform and coordinated referral system to help high-risk mothers stay connected to postpartum care and community services. The approach strengthens communication among healthcare providers, community health workers, and social service organizations while helping women navigate medical and social support resources after leaving the hospital.
A key feature of the program is a “closed-loop” referral system that enables community health workers to track referrals, follow up on unmet needs, and help ensure that women receive the services and support they need. A newly published study describes the community-engaged approach that informed the development of WeCAB and highlights the growing role of community-based interventions in improving maternal health outcomes.
The work is critically important in Central Brooklyn, where maternal health disparities remain among the most severe in New York City. Communities such as Brownsville, East Flatbush, and East New York continue to experience disproportionately high rates of severe maternal morbidity, reflecting longstanding inequities in health, access, and social conditions.
A signature initiative of the School of Public Health, WeCAB demonstrates how Downstate researchers, clinicians, and community partners are working together to improve maternal health and strengthen support for mothers and families across Brooklyn.
WeCAB has been previously reported on in the President’s Bulletin. Now in place, the next phase of the project will focus on outcomes, including whether stronger care coordination can improve connections to postpartum care, increase follow-through on referrals, and strengthen maternal health support both in the community and across Downstate’s clinical care network.
Alongside Dr. Afable, the study was published by Sandra Bruening, MS, Project Director for We Care About Brooklyn; Breanna Watson, MsPH, CHES, CLC, Deputy Executive Director of the HEAT Program and doctoral candidate in Community Health Sciences; Faven Araya, MPH., doctoral candidate and Director of Community Engagement and Health Equity Research at the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health; and Christina Pardo, M.D., MPH., Assistant Professor of Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology at Weill Cornell Medicine and Assistant Attending Obstetrician and Gynecologist at New York-Presbyterian Hospital.
Dr. Pardo previously served on the faculty at Downstate and remains an active collaborator on maternal health initiatives in Brooklyn. Participating partners include the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health and Weill Cornell Medicine.
Tags: School of Public Health